Posts by Armando 123

Racquel then or Racquel now?

@AC@15:38

Actually, I'm serious and you've exactly made my point. Halliburton is a very button-down, all business, run by Bean Counters organization. They are not a technically advanced group, at least for things such as this. Their going from BB to iPhone is the equivalent of Ford going from Word to Google Docs. They don't make that change unless they have serious issues with the state of the BB or don't think RIM is going to be around much longer.

You've been downvoted a bit, but lately I'm starting to think along the same lines.

We geeks desire freedom and the ability to customize and tailor and duct-tape our hardware and software. It's part of why we got into computing, engineering, etc, in the first place. However, most people aren't geeks and, for them, Apple's approach would seem to be a better one for the customer. There is something to be said for peer review of software, particularly if that software could get access to financial statements, health records, or GPS positions and times. I know I wouldn't want my psycho ex girlfriend knowing ANY of these things.

Plus, life for most people these days here in Americaland is pretty hectic, particularly if you have kids. I'm willing to pay for others to review software security for me just to get more time for other things.

"Judging by the rate my dog can sniff on an average day walk I just can't really believe that particular statement."

Fellow beagle owner, I take it.

@Lloyd

I'm not sure, but those might be names of my sons' playmates at The Urban And MultiCultural With A Vengence Daycare Center And Latte Bar.

To paraphrase Mitch Hedburg

I'm against protesting. I just don't know how to express it.

@NomNomNom

The blood of unborn grandchildren is too viscous.

Fiar point ...

... but how many people actually do serious computing and/or game playing? Not most, and given how many PCs are purchased annually by businesses, there won't be many doing a lot of serious computing or game-playing on those.

Difference of where you start

Apple does not have a monopoly in any market, except their own (which is like saying McDonald's has a monopoly on McDonald's fries). Microsoft, OTOH, has a monopoly and traditionally tries to leverage that monopoly to take over other markets. It didn't work with music, try as they might, and in game consoles they've dumped a TON of money to be competitive. I don't think they'll succeed with smartphones, either, because consumers and businesses are smarter now, competitors are smarter now, and when a business has a lot of momentum, it's harder for them to turn direction.

IIRC, didn't over 90% of the White House press corps vote for Clinton in both presidential elections, when he did not get a simple majority either time?

Oh, but there's no bias, of course.

The bigger the gap the bigger the incentive

Given how petroleum prices have risen in the last 10-12 years (in 1998 I could get a gallon of premium unleaded here for $1.39 a gallon; now it's $3.89), that is a BIG incentive for people to reduce (which they've done for a while) reuse(not entirely applicable for fossil fuels) and recycle (ditto). This is why things like ethanol, biodiesel, etc, have become better known and somewhat more widespread. However, it does say something about how cheap fossil fuels are that 1) a good portion of the price of a gallon of gas is tax (particularly in Europe, and you'd be surprised at price differences across state border here in the states) and that 2) the government seems to go out of its way to subsidize alternatives, that fossil fuels are still a cheaper alternative. When you consider the price per BTU, they are hard to beat.

FWIW, I contracted at an ISO here in the states (they monitor the electric grids, among other things) in 2010 and was told that with government subsidies, wind costs -$.20 per kWH. What it cost without those subsidies was never said ... which I find rather telling.

That's ntensely nteresting.